Creamy, indulgent, delicious: these are the adjectives that came to mind as I was preparing these roasted butternut squash mac and cheese. Comfort food without feeling the guilt fait accompli. No synthetic cheese, no harmful cholesterol or trans saturated fats, and yet this dish is incredibly rich and flavorful; a healthy variation of the American classic that doesn’t sacrifice flavor to enhance nutritional benefits.
Prep Time: 45 min | Cook Time: 1 hr 10 min to 1 hr 20 min | Serves: 6 | Difficulty Level: ♦♦♦ – Intermediate
the essentials
- 1 large Butternut Squash – 2 ½ to 3 cups of purée
- 1 large Broccoli Head
- 1 lbs Noodles – medium shells
the sauce
- 3 cups Milk – plant-based
- 2 cups Vegan Cheddar Cheese – shredded
- 8 Vegan Cheddar Cheese Slices
- 1 ½ cups Vegetable Broth
- 2 tbsp Nutritional Yeast
- 2 tsp Dry Sage – Dalmatian
- 1 tsp Chili Powder
- 1 tsp Salt
Roast the veggies
Preheat oven to 450° F. Cut the bottom part of the broccoli stem, rinse the crown thoroughly, and place in an oven safe baking dish with 1” of water, head down in the water. Rinse and slice the squash in half, remove seeds, and place in the same dish as the broccoli. Roast broccoli for 20 min, remove from the oven.
Return the dish with the squash to the oven, and roast for an additional 10-15 min.
Once the broccoli has cooled, cut into bite-size pieces, and set aside. Remove from the oven, scrape out the pulp with a spoon, and puree using a fork or a potato masher.
For the Cheese Sauce
In a medium saucepan, bring broth, milk, puree and seasoning to a boil. Add the cheese in these steps:
1) shreds, stir on medium for 5 min
2) slices stir on medium for 5 min.
Set aside.
Onto the Noodles and Assembly
Start the water for the noodles. Also, preheat the oven to 400° F.
When the water begins to boil, cook the noodles according to the instructions on the package. Make sure you pull the noodles out of the water while still al dente. Drain the water and return noodles to the pot, add the roasted broccoli crowns, and cheese sauce. Combine thoroughly without heat and transfer to a buttered oven safe dish. Bake for 20 min.
EXTRAS AND TIPS
I roast the broccoli crowns head down touching the water because they burn too easily if facing up. The water creates steam and helps to cook the vegetables more thoroughly without burning them to the point of becoming inedible.
For the butternut squash puree, you can use a masher or a fork. It will take about 5 minutes of meticulous pressing to reduce the roasted squash down to a lump-free puree. If pressed for time, or simply not in the mood for detailed mashing, put the flesh in a blender and pulse for a few seconds adding ½ of veggie broth. Then remember to reduce the broth allotment in the sauce from 1 ½ cup to 1 cup.
For extra cheese creaminess, I utilize cheese shreds and cheese slices. That’s not mandatory, in fact you can choose to use the shreds only, and if you opt to do so, increase the quantity from 2 cups to 3.
Last but not least, check out my tips about how to cook noodles perfectly.
